Forget Me Not
by xPaige Turnerx
Summary: 'There was something familiar about them. Something I couldn't put my finger on. Especially the small one; the pixie like girl who stood completely still in shock, like she saw a ghost.' Set during New Moon. A/B R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or anything that's familiar, yada yada yada.**

**Rated: T.**

**Author: Paige Turner.**

**Summary: 'There was something familiar about them. Something I couldn't put my finger on. Especially the small one; the pixie like girl who stood completely still in shock, like she saw a ghost.' Set during New Moon. A/B R&R! ^^**

**BELLA**

You can always tell when you're in a hospital, even _before_ you open your eyes. It has a distinct smell; like chemicals, plastic, and illness. I'm not quite sure exactly _how_ someone or something can smell like illness; just that when you breathe it in, you can smell it and feel it in your throat. It's actually really disturbing when you think about it.

Anyways, that's how I knew I was in a hospital when I woke up. The steady, mysterious beeping picked up tempo, in rhythm with my heart beat, so I assumed it was that pulse reading machine. Along with that, I could hear a drip-drip-dripping sound somewhere beside and above me. Another, stronger, heartbeat to my right and left. Voices and footsteps outside the door to my room. A TV in the opposite corner of the room with the volume way down; it sounded like a baseball game - or maybe football.

Moving onto the next sense; feeling, I regretted it immediately. Pain. Pain, pain, pain, and more pain. Worse than when James tossed me around the ballet studio. Much worse; and I didn't think that could be possible. My head was throbbing -_throbbing_- hurting when I tried to get my body to listen to me. Only one eye could open, which stung anyways and could only see blearily. The other, I assumed (too much assuming for my liking), was swollen shut, and felt pretty numb. I didn't even _want_ to sort through all the pain in my neck to figure out exactly where it was hurting. My ribs ached with ever trembling breath I took; my lungs barely able to take in the much needed air, and my back felt like it was all tied up in knots that were in constant pain. My left arm was broken, I knew that, along with my right wrist, a couple of my fingers, my left _leg_, and don't even get me started on my right hip or thigh. And to top it all off; a blanket of intense pins and needles feeling thrown over me.

When my vision cleared enough for me to see; I looked around. And wished I hadn't. The dripping turned out to be a big bag of blood _and_ an IV, both hooked up to long tubes that lead to giant needles stuck in both my arms. There were those white sticky squares with a wire running from them to the pulse monitor; just below my palms on my wrists, over my heart on my chest, on the right side of my neck, and my right temple. There was a white clip on my _one_ finger that wasn't broken and I had absolutely no idea what it did; If I had to guess I'd say it had something to do with the heart monitor as well seeing as it wasn't sticking _in_ me. Also, another needle in that hand, hooked up to another bag of dark stuff. A brace around my chest made it hard to look at the lower half of my body, but I managed. There was one of those breathing tubes hooked up in my nose which started itching once I was aware of it, my left arm was in a sling, my wrist wrist swollen and purple-y black, the fingers wrapped in white with metal in between strapped to them to keep them straight, my right ankle was in a cast looking thing, my left leg also in a cast, my right hip and thigh were in a brace thing, and a big ol' white bandage on my left temple and also on the left side of my neck.

Charlie was hunched over in a chair beside my bed; a scruffy looking beard growing in, and dark cycles under his eyes, and his hair was a mess; more so than usual. His snores were as quiet as the TV. Renee was on the other side, her hair not quite as shiny as usual, the came circles under her eyes, and her nails shockingly bitten (she used to scold me for doing so, telling me I'd ruin them). She stretched in her seat, looking over to me and then Charlie; before her eyes nearly popped out of her head as they shot back to me. Her mouth fell open for a few seconds before she beamed. "Bella!" She yelled, jumping out of her chair.

Charlie jumped to his feet as well, fiercely blinking the sleep from his eyes. When he saw me, he charged to the door, yanking it open. "Get the doctor! She's awake!" He was immediately by my side again. "Bells! You're alright! You're okay…right? Are you alright? You're awake, so that means you're okay. But are you alright? Who did this? What happened? Who-who-" Renee shushed the desperate, blubbering Charlie who looked about ready to shoot someone; touching the gun holstered on his hip. "Who?"

Renee looked to me. "Honey?"

My voice cracked before I even got the first syllable out. Luckily, the doctor came in then; looking completely different from the doctor I was foolishly hoping it was. He had short brown hair, thick glasses, and kind green eyes. "Hello, Isabella. I'm Doctor Mick." Dr. Mick? I wasn't liking this already. "Firstly, how are you feeling?"

They all turned to me. I grimaced and croaked out my answer; my voice gravelly and rough. "Ouch."

Dr. Mick looked down at the chart on the end of my bed. "Alright; I'm going to let you know the extent of your injuries," He looked at me and I gave him a slight nod of my head. "But I want you to remember that you _will_ recover to nearly perfect condition. Then, some people will come in and ask you a few questions." Again, he looked at me and I nodded. Renee patted my good leg, offering me a small smile. "You cracked your skull open on your left temple and eyebrow, which will scar, and you've been unconscious for the past week and a half." The heart monitor picked up speed again. "Your left eye is swollen shut, along with a gash that will also scar on your cheek. There is an…odd, animal bite on the left side of your neck. Your back is twisted, though luckily enough, isn't broken or injured any worse; with physical therapy, it should get better in a year or so. You have three broken ribs, the rest cracked or bruised, a broken arm, wrist, and fingers. Your left leg is as well, and both your right hip and the bones in your right thigh are shattered; unfortunately even when they heal, you won't be able to run properly and will most likely have a limp for the rest of your life. You lost an enormous amount of blood, more than was recovered at the scene oddly enough. I would consider yourself luck though, Miss Swan." He said, trying to smile.

"Lucky?" I rasped. Was he trying to be funny? There was nothing, _nothing_ lucky about that. That…this…these injuries were ten times _worse_ then what James gave me. I was in a coma for a _week and a half_ and I've got more needles in me than a pin cushion. Exactly how was I lucky?

"Yes. When they found you; you were dead." He replied. My eyes, _eye_, widened. I was dead? Like, no heart beat, kicked the bucket, pushing up daisies, kind of dead? "Your body spasmed before your heart jump started when you were placed on the coroner's table." I felt like I was going to be sick. Could you imagine if they had started to cut me open when that happened? Gross.

Dr. Mick checked all the things hooked up to me, including the heart monitor, before he left. Charlie and Renee stayed quiet while we waited for whoever was coming to come; letting me absorb what the doctor said. I was dead. _Dead._

The door opened, and a man and a woman walked in. They looked like just your average police officers, only their uniforms weren't blue; but rather a green. And instead of a gold badge like Charlie's; theirs were sewn onto their uniforms, a beige colour, with writing that read 'Animal Control'. They were probably there for the _animal_ bite on my neck; wondering what could have possibly made it. That wasn't good, because I also couldn't think of any animal that could make a bite mark like that. I'd have to think of something when they asked and preyed they bought it.

The woman held a clip board and offered me a sympathetic smile. "Hello, Isabella." She greeted, turning to Charlie and Renee, "Mr. Swan. Mrs. Doyle."

Renee hesitated. "Hello…?"

"Susan." The woman replied and turned to the man. "And this is Mark." She said. The man nodded to my parents before looking at me.

"We have some questions we need to ask, I hope you don't mind. In private, preferably." He said.

Charlie furiously shook his head. "Anything you need to ask, we can hear."

Mark nodded. "Alright."

Susan cleared her throat. "Okay. What can you remember last, Isabella?"

"Bella." I muttered. At her raised eyebrow, I explained. "Call me Bella." My voice broke and Renee handed me a glass of water from the little table beside her chair. "The last thing I remember…"

_'We're leaving, Bella.'_

_That made sense; people would start noticing that they weren't changing soon. I just wished I had a little more time here. Maybe finish school at least; I only had one more year to go. "Alright, I'll have to think of something to tell Charlie, but… I… Can…' the look on Edward's face made me stop. 'By _we_ you mean you and the others, don't you?'_

The heart monitor slowed down and I could feel what little colour I had, leave my face. "I remember coming home from school."

_'You're no good for me, Bella.' His face was cold, so cold. His eyes were nearly black and sent a chill down my spine._

_'You… You don't want… me?' I whispered._

_'No.'_

I cleared my throat, swallowing the lump in it. "I remember going for a walk to clear my head."

_'Well, that changes things.' Had the others already left? Just up and got on a plane without a good bye? 'Where's Alice?' The thought of her leaving without saying good bye hurt more than Edward breaking up with me for some reason._

_Edward's eyes widened in surprise before they darkened even more and narrowed. Apparently he didn't like the fact that I wasn't still on the part about him not wanting me. 'Gone. She and the rest of the family left already. I felt a messy good bye was unneeded; this will be easier for you.' He replied, staring just past my shoulder._

There were tears at least on one side of my face; I wasn't sure about the other, I still couldn't feel it. "Ed-Edward had broken up with me…that morning because he was leaving, right after school for Alaska." I couldn't let them think he took me out there or was anywhere near Forks when this happened; him up and leaving would look suspicious then, if it didn't already.

_'Why?' I'm not sure exactly what I needed a redone for. Why he didn't want me? Why they even bothered with me in the first place? Why all connections were being severed? Just because Edward wasn't dating me anymore didn't mean I couldn't be friends with Alice still, did it?_

_Edward must have taken it as why he didn't want me. 'You're human. A…distraction, something to pass the time and keep boredom at bay.' He whispered, his brows furrowed. 'So don't bother following us, you won't be able to. This is the last time you'll ever see me. I promise.'_

"I-I got lost on my way back. It had gotten dark quickly." I stammered out.

_Everywhere I turned were trees. It was like a maze, and I couldn't find my way out. Not even after stumbling through creeks and over fallen logs, through bushes and around boulders. It didn't help that the sun had gone down a while ago._

"An animal found me." Renee paled as well while Charlie ran a hand through his hair.

_'Well, well, well. What do we have here? A clumsy little human, lost in the big bad woods. What's in the basket, Little Red?' The laughter that filled the air was bone chilling. A flash of wild red hair and equally wild, red eyes, had me stumbling backwards._

_'Victoria.'_

"I tried running away, but it was too fast and I couldn't see. There was really no point in running anyways." I muttered, detached.

_Blood trickled down my cheek. I flopped over on to my back, scanning the trees surrounding me for the vampire. A marble foot got my ribs, launching me yards away into a little creek. I groaned, wrapping my arm around myself._

_'Where are your vampires?'_

_'Gone.' I growled._

_A cold, hard body straddled my waist, pinning my right arm against my side, grabbing my other that was clutching my ribs. When I wouldn't let her have it; she squeezed. I cried out, feeling the bone snap like a twig, tears running down my face as she slammed it against the ground on my other side. 'This won't be as fulfilling as I thought it would be, then. No matter; the boy is bound to find another new play thing soon and I'll be waiting when he does.'_

_Hope swelled in my chest. 'So you can let me go then?'_

_Victoria looked down at me like she forgot I was there, smiling a wolfish grin. 'Of course not, child. You are still responsible for the death of my dear James. Besides,' She raised a hand to her throat. 'I'm feeling a little…parched, and you _do_ smell quite delicious.' Tears ran down my face again. Victoria shifted, looking at me curiously. "Would you mind terribly, if I asked you a question?'_

_Hysteria bubbled up my throat, but I managed to stay calm. 'You vampires sure are polite.' Sarcasm was heavy in my voice as I winced; my arm throbbing._

_'We were raised in a proper day in age. Youth today have no manners.' She replied, frowning with distaste._

_'You're right; I probably would have just blurted out my question before savagely murdering you.'_

_Victoria's eyes gleamed; her fangs exposing as she smiled. 'I can see why they kept you around; you're quite the amusing little thing.' I gasped as she squeezed her knees together, my ribs aching in protest to the pressure. 'Back to my question though. Was he worth it?'_

_When I was young and saw cars at junk yards being crushed, I often wondered and feared what it would be like if you were locked in the trunk or something while it was happening. This, I realized, was probably the equivalent._

_I took a deep breath, knowing this was most likely the last time I would ever get to speak again, 'They all are.'_

"It caught me and… you know the rest." I finished.

Charlie cursed, rubbing his eyes. "I'll gather some of the boys and we'll find the thing, Bells. Don't worry."

"She's already gone. Don't bother." I didn't want Charlie out there _looking_ for Victoria. He, and whoever he took, would end up getting hurt or worse.

"She?" He asked.

Oh. "Yeah, uh, I could tell it was female." I answered.

"What kind of animal was it?" Renee asked.

I shrugged as best I could. "Feline. That's all I know."

Mark cleared his throat. "Thank you. That's all we needed." He turned and headed to the door with Susan.

**XxXxXxXx**

Charlie had left hours ago to send out a small party with Susan and Mark, who were still going to search the woods around our house anyways; despite my protests to Charlie. I only managed to calm down once I rationalized that Victoria had said she was going to go track down Edward, who was all the way up in Alaska; and since Vampires could move extraordinarily fast; she was most definitely long gone by now. Still; I couldn't sleep, and I reckoned I wouldn't be _able_ to sleep until the next morning when Charlie was safe and sound, back here in my hospital room with me.

Renee too, left a while ago; it was late and Phil was back at the hotel, so she had to get going. She promised she would be back, bright and early in the morning when the sun came up, even joking about how we really wouldn't be able to tell if the sun was up in this town, and left me to my own devices. My own devices were basically laying there all evening, late into the night, doing nothing. Sometimes crying, other times thinking. Actually; most of the time thinking. Thinking about things like how I managed to live from Victoria's attack. Or what _would_ have happened if Edward had stayed just a few hours longer. Wondering if Alice saw what happened and did nothing about it. Or if Victoria knew how to get around Alice's visions. I thought about just how long it would take until I could walk again, or at least wiggle my fingers without wincing. I wondered how much longer I'd have to stay hooked up to the blood and IV, and when I could eat again.

I thought about Jacob. He had invited me to a bonfire this weekend…or rather, the weekend Edward broke up with me. Angela; we had been mulling around with the thought of getting the whole group together to catch a movie or something soon. Then I began wondering if they had stopped by; the only one I was certain would have stopped by was Angela, but there was also a good chance Mike did as well. Probably Eric too. It was doubtful and hard to imagine that either Jessica or Lauren would have. Would I have homework when I went back to school? Would the teachers have sympathy and just let me off the hook with no extra work to do? Or would I have to repeat the grade, or at least go to summer school for all the classes I missed?

The nurses had been stopping in less and less frequently. It was late, I assumed around eleven o'clock; with midnight just around the corner. My door was closed and the TV and lights were all off, but there was golden light spilling into the room from under the door. It reminded me of the Cullens and their eyes, which started a whole new series of crying. I couldn't decide what was worse; the physical pain, or the emotional pain. I was hurt, and angry, and so damn sad, and a little numb because of the whole situation.

A gust of cold wind stirred the white curtains over the window in the room, forming goose bumps on my arms and legs. My brows furrowed; I could have sworn the window had been closed before; the last nurse had commented on the chilly night as she closed it. Had I dozed off and another nurse had come in and opened it? I shrugged it off; it wasn't like it really mattered anyways, it was just a window.

My eyes flickered over to the corner of the room where I caught movement; my breath getting caught in my throat as I froze. There, in the corner of the room by the door, stood a boy and a girl. They couldn't have been much older than me. Early twenties at most. The guy had black hair, weaving down to his shoulders. His eyes were… familiar. They were a bright, ruby red that was starting to darken. He was extremely pale, though with an olive skin tone that threw the paleness off. He was a solid guy; not quite as big as Emmett, but not as small as Edward either. He wore a suit; black combat boots, black suit pants, a white button up shirt, with a black vest and tie, and a black hooded cape.

The girl was much the same with the long black wavy hair, with the same ruby red eyes and pale complexion. She was about my height, wearing exactly the same thing as the boy, though instead of a white blouse, hers was a very dark red. Her hooded cape was opened more, and I caught a glimpse of thick black belts, criss crossing and hanging around her waist. They were lined with something silver, it looked like symbols from here, though on the front of one belt, I could definitely make out the word '_Volturi'_. Hanging from the belts, on both hips, were two, sleek, shiny silver blades that looked extremely sharp and sparkled, like they were embedded with crystals. I glanced back at the boy and noticed he too had the same belts and blades.

When the girl caught me looking, she offered a small, mischievous smile; flashing her fangs. I blanched. "Hello, Isabella." She greeted, in that smooth, velvety voice all Vampires possessed, though hers was thick with an Italian accent. It had the same effect on me as the Cullens' had; slowing the frantic beeping of the heart monitor down to a more reasonable speed.

"H-Hello." I whispered back, wincing as I stuttered. I wasn't afraid of Vampires; this was the second time I fought with one and came out alive. But these Vampires…they were different. Vampires oozed power, because, well, they _were_ powerful. But these ones, these ones made Victoria, James, Laurent, and the Cullens look human. I _was_ afraid of these Vampires, and for good reason. Edward had told me some, very few really, stories about the Volturi.

The girl's grin grew and the boy smiled politely at me. "I am Chelsea, and this is Demetri." She gave a small curtsy as Demetri inclined his head. "We've come bringing some bad news and some good news; which would you prefer to hear first?" She asked, casually strolling over to the bag of blood hanging beside my bed. I watched as her eyes slowly darkened to a deep black as she subconsciously licked her lips.

"_Fuoco_, Chelsea."(1) Demetri murmured.

Chelsea shook her head slightly, smiling an apologetic smile at Demetri before turning to me expectantly. I gulped. "The good new, please."

Chelsea nodded and smiled again, though it was more of a cringe smile. _"Buona scelta.(2)_ The good news is that your pain will be over in a matter of days."

I had a feeling of where this was going. Sort of. I got the idea she planned on changing me, or maybe taking me back to Italy for Aro or whoever Edward said ruled them, to kill me. "And the bad?" I asked, hesitantly.

Chelsea smiled sadly at me. "The bad news is that it is about to get much, much worse. "

Before I could question what she meant; Chelsea snatched the bag of blood from the hook, ripping the needle from my arm. I cried out, but there was a cold, stone hand covering my mouth to keep me quiet. Demetri stood over me, his hand over my mouth as he watched Chelsea get to work. She blurred over to the window, ripping a hole into the bag, and poured most of it out onto the pavement below, three stories down. She then turned to Demetri as she straddled the sill. "On random trees, the ground, and boulders all the way to the cliff's edge?" She asked.

Demetri nodded and she slipped out the window, disappearing down below. I looked over to Demetri with fear in my eyes, waiting for him to finish me off. "Write. One word please; _sorry._" He shoved a piece of paper and pencil into my hands. It was fairly messy, hardly legible, but he took it and put it on the table beside the bed before blurring back over to me, ripping off the rest of the needles and anything else sticking to me. In one swift movement, I was in his arms, and then we were on the pavement, below my window three stories up. There was a large puddle of blood on the ground here that he was careful not to step in. He gently lay me on the ground in it, lightly gripping either side of my head. "You will remember nothing. All ties to your human life will be severed without your memory, like amnesia. It will be less painful this way; I promise." He whispered; remorse in his tone.

"No." I tried to yell, though I doubt it was even audible.

Before I had the chance to struggle, there was an explosion of pain in the back of my head, and a cloud of darkness swallowing me whole.

_"Isabella Volturi."_ Was the last thing I could remember before there was nothing.

**XxXxXxXx**

**Sigh.**

**Another story.**

**Jeeze.**

**Well, tell me if I should continue this one, or Deceitful Truth in a review please. Or maybe both?**

**1: Focus, in Italian.**

**2: Good choice, in Italian.**

**-Paige.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or anything that's familiar, yada yada yada.**

**Rated: T.**

**Author: Paige Turner.**

**Summary: 'There was something familiar about them. Something I couldn't put my finger on. Especially the small one; the pixie like girl who stood completely still in shock, like she saw a ghost.' Set during New Moon. A/B R&R! ^^**

**BELLA**

The Human body is interesting. So much more interesting than the Vampire body, oddly enough. There's just…so much more going on with a human's body than a vampire's. For instance; the human body generate's it's own heat, whereas a vampire's cannot. Bernard; who is the closest thing to a scientist we have around here, theorizes that it is because of blood. Thus, he deduces that since we have no blood in our systems to keep us warm, we are cold. I suppose it is believable to some; no one has questioned him, well, no one but me. And no one has bothered to actually _learn_ this stuff, again; but me. Often, it's quite tempting to correct Bernard and make a fool of him, since he's taken to flaunting his 'intelligence' around the castle; acting superior and talking to others as though they were children. He's even gone as far as to wear glasses, which is more than ridiculous. However, that common decency that he seems to have lost somewhere along the line, keeps me from doing so. Besides; it's quite pointless; who really cares how human's stay warm, when we ourselves are not humans?

'A human's body heat is generated by the rate at which they metabolize fats and sugars.'

I gently set the pen down beside the small, leather bound notebook on the table in front of me. I was in the library, or study, whichever you prefer to call it, like most days. It was a generally deserted room; I was fairly certain that I was the only one who used it. When I had first wandered upon it, every surface, tables, sofas, chairs, bookshelves, and books; were covered in a thick layer of dust. Of course, that was four years ago, when I first arrived here in the Volturi castle. I was drawn here, reading each and every book in the room, taking in as much knowledge as I could, seeing as I had none prior to finding the room. It wasn't much, most of the books were journals, and vague ones at that. I wasn't aloud to leave the castle until I had absolute control over my thirst, which actually didn't take very long, so I requested that Heidi bring back books with her, each trip she made to lure in tourists. She wasn't happy about it, but Aro agreed, not liking that he had a blank slate as a Volturi Guard.

Looking around the room _now_, there were all kinds of books; dictionaries, atlases, biographies, history books, fiction, romance, horror, cooking books, mechanics books, all kinds of books that trained you to do just about anything you could think of. And I found that I enjoyed reading, very much, though it made me wonder about my human life; if I had always liked to read, or was this something I just picked up? More often than not, I was wondering about my human life. Was I rich like now? Or was I poor, like the homeless on the streets and in the alleys of Voltera? Did I have both a mother and father, or _just_ a mother or father? Siblings? Did we get along? I wondered about relationships, but that seemed highly unlikely; I was surrounded by beautiful vampires all day long, yet none of them…caught my eye, so to speak.

So many questions.

I've asked a few of the Guard around here, particularly Demetri, seeing as his voice is the very first thing I can remember; yet they all deny knowing anything. The story I was told was that Demetri had found me, bleeding in a parking lot, and changed me because of my peculiar gift. Chelsea had been with him apparently, and she had not been able to use her gift on me. Not much had changed there; no one could use their gifts on me; not Aro with his mind reading, who could read any thought you've ever had, or Alec, who can cut off all your senses, leaving you completely helpless and vulnerable, or Jane, who could make you feel like you were in an intense, unbearable pain.

Yes, the Guard was full of vampires who had special gifts, which was what made the rest of the race fear us. We were a force that no one dared to challenge.

Except possibly the Romanians.

A long time ago, before I was born, _way_ before; the Romanians were in power, acting much like the Volturi do now as Royalty. Aro, Marcus, and Caius, with their own army, over threw the Romanians, and took control. Ever since, Aro has suspected that Vladmir and Stephan plan to take back their thrones, and thus, has prepared us. He didn't want to take the chance of having hand to hand combat, gifts or not, and developed weaponry. How he did it, no one but he, Marcus, Caius, and whoever creates them, knows. It's the most secretive secret that the three have, and for good reason. Blades, swords; made out of mineral much like iron in it's strength and durability, combined with crystal, melted down and cooled into blades, creating swords that can cut even vampire skin.

Of course, resources aren't unlimited, and only the Volturi Guard Elites carry the blades, one for each hand, while the rest hope their bare hands are enough.

I myself, am lucky enough to be an Elite, and carry my own blades. Beautiful looking swords, with their black handles and curved slick silver blades. They hang on each hip from the criss crossing belts hanging around my waist, black and embedded with silver symbols and the word '_Volturi'_ on the front of one belt, just like all the other Elites. And like the others, I wear the black combat boots; durable but not clonking enough to effect my running speed, black suit pants, my favourite red blouse with black roses stitched around the collar and cuffs, with a black vest, sometimes a tie, and the black hooded cape. Aro preferred a formal attire because of our Royalty, but didn't like the idea of dresses, which I had to agree with. How many people do you see fighting in dresses?

A set of heavy footsteps could be heard on the other side of the room, quickly closing in on my position. I sighed quietly to myself, rubbing my eyes, which I could feel starting to darken. It had been a while since Heidi left on another trip out into the city. Nicholas, one of the lower ranking Guards, stomped over in front of the couch I was lounging on, bowing his head slightly. "Aro requests your presence in the throne room, Isabella." His smooth, Italian accented voice spoke quietly. For someone who walked quite noisily, he spoke softly. I had a feeling it was out of fear that he spoke in such hushed tones; he was new, after all. Newer than me even.

I sat there, watching him stand in front of me, waiting for my reply. His head was still bowed and I could see his red eyes staring intently at his feet, unblinking. As a matter of fact, he wasn't breathing either; not a single muscle in his body moving. I shifted, watching him flinch slightly before he became still again. Most of the Guard was like that; Jane was responsible, not hesitating in the slightest to use her gift when someone annoyed her. I wasn't sure if they expected me to be the same or worse, considering I was the one person who Jane could not "bully" with her gift. I suppose they thought it to make me worse than she was, which was hardly the case.

Despite the fact that Jane couldn't use her gift on me, she rather liked me. That was my doing; bowing from the waist rather than just my head like the others. Everyone bowed from the waist for Aro, Marcus, and Caius, only giving slight head bows to the Elite. Jane didn't like this, and I was sure she also didn't like that Aro and his brothers ruled. She was stronger, her gift more powerful, especially alongside her brother's; she spiked fear in all the others to the point where they would serve her just as they would Aro, and I had a feeling, some day soon, she would take over the Volturi. So, I did what I could to get on her good side, knowing that if it came down to a battle within the Volturi, I would side with her. Because, though I may not be effected by her, or anyone else's gift, she influenced a lot of vampires who could physically put me in a lot of pain.

I stood, tying my hooded cape around my neck and lifted the hood over my head as I followed Nicholas out of the library and into the stone hall. This was the older part of the castle, still lit by candles along the walls; painted portraits of Aro, Marcus, and Caius in their thrones or other various scenes. The halls were quite long, and all looked a lot alike; a human could easily get lost within them, like Gianna. I found her wandering around, looking for the her desk by the elevators many times, or looking for one of the Guard to deliver a message from another of the Guard. It was fairly dark in the halls as well, with so much space between the candles on the walls, and I gathered that she couldn't see very well in them, which was a big part of the reason she'd get lost.

Felix, a big brute of a man, with black hair cropped short, and large tree trunks for arms, was entering the throne room when we got there. He nodded his head at me, glancing at Nicholas before he entered. Nicholas stayed behind at the doors, leaving us to ourselves as we approached the middle of the room where two others stood with their heads bowed. Aro, a very pale, even by vampire standards, man with long black hair and sparkling red eyes sat in a throne, smiling that creepy smile of his. His brother, Caius, with long blonde hair and cold red eyes, sat in another. Lastly, Marcus, with long brown hair, and bored red eyes, was slumped in his throne. Sometimes it was hard to imagine that these three were the most feared creatures in the world.

I bowed, keeping my head down as Aro stood from his throne. "_Ciao_, Isabella, Felix. I trust you both are doing well?"

_"Si, padrone."_ we both replied. That too, sometimes crept me out. Someone was always saying the same thing at the same time as me; or maybe because it was just an automatic response.

Aro's smile grew; I could hear it in his voice. "Good. Now then, onto business. An old friend of mine, Eleazer Denali has asked a favour of me. There seems to be a lot of disappearances in the area he and another coven are staying in, and they fear it has something to do with them. He wasn't very specific," Aro frowned. "But they have reason to believe that an army is being built to destroy them for retribution."

"That seems highly unlikely, Master." Thomas said. He was standing beside me, as tall as Felix, though not nearly as solid or muscular. He had short brown hair, hanging in his red eyes, and sharp features; high cheek bones, pointed chin. Beside him stood Raven, she was a little taller than myself, with flowing black hair that seemed to reach near her waist, with softer features, and more of a round face. Her red eyes were kind, something that wasn't common around here, but the blades she carried stated she was an Elite, and had probably killed more than Nicholas and Thomas combined. "Everyone knows the penalty for creating a coven larger than four without consent. Building an army is just…stupid."

Aro nodded. "Exactly, that's why I want you four to go out there and find out what is going on. Stop the disappearances, find the vampires responsible, and take care of them as well."

"And if they are hiding? I would think that these covens would have stopped the creation of this 'army' while they could." Raven commented.

"The Denalis are vegetarians, and worse than that, try to act human. I don't think they're prepared for any confrontations, which is why they've sought out our help. I'm not sure about the other coven, Eleazer didn't even mention them over the phone." Aro replied. "No more questions; head out before the humans grow suspicious. The covens are staying in Manchester."

"It will be done, Master." I finished. With that, the four of us left the throne room, heading for Gianna's desk to make the preparations for our flight.

Manchester. England. Constant cloud and rain.

Joy.

**XxXxXxXx**

"Any idea of where to start?" Thomas asked, peering over the ledge of the building. We were stood on one of the tallest buildings in the city, looking down at the dark, deserted streets of Manchester. I made sure to have my shield around everyone which was a lot harder than it sounded. It wasn't like I was covering them with a bubble or anything that simple where I could just push it from myself to them as well. It was like taping into their minds, linking them with mine and my shield. The only upside was that I could keep it on them even if they were all the way on the other side of the city.

Felix grunted in the back of his throat, looking from Thomas to the city below. He took one long deep breath, his eyes scanning every street, every side walk. "It's faint, covering this entire half of the city. Spread out. We'll meet back here just before dawn." With that, he hoisted himself over the ledge of the building, landing silently down below before blurring off. Raven followed him, though she stuck to the roof tops to keep a better look, which meant I was stuck with the novice.

"Keep quiet or they'll hear you." I murmured, blurring to the side of the building and leaping to the roof top beside it. Thomas landed beside me, just as silent, and we took off, heading in the opposite direction of Raven and Felix.

I was hoping Raven, or me and Thomas found the vampires first. Felix was more likely to kill and ask questions later.

And right now, we needed answers, not violence.

**XxXxXxXx**

I could see Thomas's hooded figure down the street, peering down each end of the road. He lifted his head, sniffing the air and growled quietly to himself. _"Niente!"_

I sighed, running farther down the sidewalk in the way that we were heading. We had been out here for three hours, searching for the vampires; but any trail we came across was old, and led to a lake or body of water where it would be lost. Obviously whoever these vampires were, didn't _want_ to be found, which made them that much more suspicious. That didn't necessarily mean that an army was being created, because I had to agree with Thomas; it was stupid. Who would create a whole army just to take out one coven? But I have heard that the Denali coven was quite large, just like their 'cousins'the Cullens. There wasn't much information on them though; at least, none that I could find, and no one seemed to be willing to tell me anything. A lot of things were kept from me at the Volturi castle; and at first I had blamed it on me being a new recruit, but now that I had been with them for four years, there were still too many secrets and things being kept from me.

A familiar scent wafted to me; sweet with a metallic twinge. Blood.

There wasn't much around me. A large field with soccer goal posts, a football field, bleachers, all fenced in with a large chan linked fence. Then there was a large building, it looked like maybe a gymnasium, with other, smaller buildings around. I concluded that this was a school yard. I also happened to notice that there was a couple dozen different scents of vampires. The vegetarians must have gone there, along with their friends, but unless all together they were a group of thirty eight, then there _was_ an army being built. What on earth did these vegetarians do that was worth creating an army over? It had to have been bad for them to resort to this, which was sentencing themselves to a death penalty from us, because army or not, we still had the upper hand. Newborns were sloppy, untrained, average people.

Thomas stopped beside me, taking another deep breath. "Blood. And vampire." He turned to look at me with a raised eyebrow. "They're still fresh."

I nodded towards the gym, jumping the fence and stalked towards the building. It was fairly huge, bigger than I expected it to be, and echoing. I could hear the human's frantic heart beat, and their ragged breathing as they ran away from the door. I grimaced at the burn in the back of my throat; I had forgotten to feed before leaving, but still; Aro said there couldn't be any more disappearances around here. I'd have to wait until after. One of the back metal doors was open; the thick glass smashed and the lock undamaged which meant they unlocked it reaching around. That also meant that they were organized; not wanting police to know something strong enough to rip the door off it's hinges broke it. And judging by the amount of blood I could smell; they were purposefully making a scene.

I crept in the door, looking around the large gym. Or not… there was a large pool in the middle of the room, a long one, where I assumed swim teams practiced and raced, with bleachers on the side, and large doors leading to the rest of the gym on the other side. The pool water was giving off a glow, reflecting the moonlight from the skylight, which made it easier to see; not that I wouldn't have been able to. I noticed a few things at once, one; there was blood drops, large ones really, leading all along one side of the pool. Two; they lead to a quivering, crying human girl who was huddled against the metal doors leading to the rest of the gym. And three; there were mirrors of all shapes and sized hanging on the walls around the room, looking like they were put up in a rush.

What the _hell_ was going on?

The mirrors gave me a bad feeling, all of this did really. The girl with the long mahogany hair, her blue eyes and fairly pale skin, all huddled and bleeding on the corner of the room. The dark, horror like atmosphere.

_'__I thought this room would be visually dramatic for my little film. That's why I picked this place to meet you. It's perfect, isn't it?'_

I froze, listening to the smooth, teasing voice. It sent a shiver down my spine, but I quickly shook it off. I was used to the small snippets of memory from my human life; it was mostly unimportant things, like the rain, giant trees, a red chevy truck that looked older than Aro. Sometimes feelings would also come with those memories, but usually it was pointless things that didn't matter in the slightest, or tell me who I was.

The girl screamed as a shadow jumped down from the bleachers, landing gracefully in front of her. He cackled, crouching down to get to eye level with her. "Well, I'm afraid I've had my fun, though the chase here was much too short for my liking, but the time has come to put the finishing touches on this scene." He said, slowly reaching for her neck. The girl shuddered, pressing herself more firmly against the doors as she cried silently.

I tackled the vampires away from her, growling loudly in my chest. I had the sudden urge to make sure his little game didn't conclude. The vampire growled as well while the girl scrambled away up into the bleachers. He reached up at me, wrapping his hands around my neck and started to squeeze. I snarled, slamming my forehead down on to his, leaving him slightly dazed while I got to my feet and tossed him into the pool. He shot right back out, though I was ready and kicked him square in the chest, launching him back into the water. This time he climbed out slowly, glaring at me. His gaze flickered to the girl in the bleachers, then to me, and finally to the door that was still openl.

I blinked and he blurred off to the door, planning on outrunning me. Sighing, I examined my nails, listening to the deafening crack as Thomas's fist connected with the vampire's face. The vampire howled, clutching his nose as he staggered back into the gym. Thomas kicked the back of his knees, forcing him to them, and grabbed the back of his head, jerking his face up. I casually strolled over, taking out one of my blades and held it against the vampire's neck, cutting into his skin enough for him to hiss in pain. "Now then," I cleared my throat. "I've got some questions and you better prey you have the answers."

The vampire gulped and I grinned wickedly.

"Who created you?" His eyes were still an extremely bright red, the shade of a newborn's which meant he was created not long ago; a couple of months maybe.

The vampire looked at me with wide eyes before they flickered off around the room, like he expected someone to pop out of the shadows. "I c-can't. He'll kill me if I tell."

I shook my head slowly, adding more pressure to the blade. "And you'll wish I had if you don't."

He seemed to consider this for a second, looking down to the blade at his neck. "Alright, his name was Riley. That's all I know about him. A bunch of us were created by him, and he's organized us out of town."

I furrowed my brows. "Why?"

The vampire shrugged, gulping again. "There's another group of vampires we're supposed to fight. He needs us to even out the numbers more so he can get the human girl."

"What human girl?"

The vampire paused. "I-I don't know. I only know I'm supposed to fight the people with gold eyes."

Gold eyes? I looked up to Thomas. _"Vampiri con gli occhi dell'oro?"(1)_

Thomas shrugged; he didn't know what the guy was talking about either.

"And what about this? Why all the mirrors and big scene. Are you purposefully trying to make the humans suspicious?" I asked the vampire, nodding towards one of the walls full of mirrors.

He furiously shook his head, nearly making me slice into him. "No! They-the humans think it's gang related. Others think it's someone going around randomly killing people. They have no idea about us, honest!"

"And the mirrors?" I pushed. They really, _really_ bothered me.

He looked around at them. "It's a message, to one of the gold eyes. Riley told me how to set it up; mirrors around the room, a pale girl with brown hair; break her leg, break a mirror on her, and drain her from her hand." He said, as if reciting instructions on how to build a model airplane. For the second time that night, I froze, looking down to the pale crescent scar on my hand. I growled lowly in my chest, feeling my eyes darken in frustration as I looked up into the fearful eyes of the vampire again.

"How do I find this Riley and the others?"

The vampire paused again and shook his head.

Felix and Raven showed up in the door then, looking around the room and then to the vampire in front of me. I nodded at Thomas and the others. "Take him out of here; try to get a location out of him and then finish him off."

The vampire's eyes widened as he began struggling in Thomas's grip. "What? No! I told you! I told you everything I knew! Let me go! I told you!" He shrieked as Felix started dragging him from the gym. Raven and Thomas followed close behind, leaving me to clean up all of this. I grimaced, swallowing down the venom that pooled in my mouth.

The girl was still crying up in the stands, and I couldn't bring myself to kill her like I should have. It was something about the mirrors again; but I knew ways around that. I'd have to stop by a liquor store, make sure she ingested an obscene amount, and drop her off at a hospital. Anything she said then wouldn't be taken seriously and would be blamed on the alcohol. But I'd also have to make sure there were no traces of blood here, dispose of all the mirrors, and do something about the window. I suppose I could leave it broken, and come back with a can of spray paint; making it look like someone broke in to vandalize.

Okay, first the girl. I blurred up the steps of the bleachers, stopping in front of the girl who screamed. I clamped my hand over her mouth, glaring at her until she stopped. "If you try to scream again, I will change my mind and kill you. Understand?" I waited a few seconds until she nodded and slowly removed my hand. When she didn't scream, I breathed a sigh of relief. "Good." I appraised the girl. "You seem reasonable enough… If you tell anyone about what happened here tonight; I will come back for you." The girl's heartbeat picked up. "And your family."

She gasped, shaking her head. "I won't tell, I p-promise! I won't, I-I swear I w-won't! _Please!_"

I shushed her. "Alright, alright, shut up! I still need a back up plan just in case; you will come with me, you _won't_ bring any extra attention to us or try to call for help, and you _will_ drink what I tell you, until I tell you to stop. Understand?" Again she nodded.

With that, I scooped her up in my hands and ran to the nearest bar I could find, grumbling uncomfortably every time she buried her face in my neck to keep from looking around at the speed we were going at. That was actually the closest I had ever let anyone get to me. Luckily she had money on her, and after a dozen shots of vodka, she could barely walk. By that time, she was obviously so far gone because she _willingly_ clung to my side. I dropped her off at a hospital despite her protests, and for reasons unknown to myself, she left me her name; Antonia. Oddly enough I could catch a hint of a vampire's scent, before racing off to the nearest store where I was sure there would be paint. It happened to be a Home Depot, where I received many odd looks, but I paid no mind and kept going, back to the school and gym.

I paused, staring at the line of blood for a few moments, rubbing my neck. "I'm not _that_ thirsty." I muttered, wiping it all up with a handkerchief. I disposed of it in the nearest garbage can, looking at it and decided that it looked like someone had just gotten a really bad nose bleed, and continued on. The mirrors took a little longer to take down, mostly because I had to do so without any ladders or anything.

And finally, I had to do the vandalizing. I stood there for a good while, with a can of blood red spray paint in my hand, staring up at the blank wall above the bleachers, trying to think of what to do. I was never really good at art or anything; I mean, what I _could_ do was very nice, but I couldn't do anything complicated. I decided to go for something simple, a large 'V' for Volturi. After that, I grabbed the bag of mirrors, tossed the empty spray can (It was a very big, very thick, 'V') in it, and blurred back off away from the school.

A couple blocks away, I dumped the bag into a dumpster behind a restaurant, and looked up at the sky. There was one giant grey cloud covering the sky, but the cloud itself was getting brighter, which meant that the sun was coming up. Back on the rooftop, Raven was scowling while Felix glared off to the side of the building. I turned to Thomas who was frowning. "What's wrong?"

Thomas sighed and rolled his shoulders. "We couldn't get a location out of the newborn. He wouldn't talk, no matter what. We figure he either didn't actually know, because all the places we checked were empty, or he was just extremely loyal. Either way, Aro won't be pleased." He finished, and Felix rumbled out a growl. Felix wasn't known for going on missions and not accomplishing what he set out to do.

Scratching the back of my neck, I looked at the others. Felix off in the corner of the building, glaring down at the road below. Raven leaning up against the antenna on the other side of the building, the wind blowing ripples in her hood. And Thomas, looking at me expectantly. "Alright. Felix, you return to Italy; Aro doesn't like you gone for very long, especially if I'm not there to shield him. We'll stay here and continue the search during the evenings and see what other information we can get from the other covens."

"And what will you do during the days? Hide out in alleys?" Felix asked in that deep voice of his. I shrugged, nodding.

Thomas had other plans though. "We go to school of course."

Raven and I whirled on him. _"What?"_

Thomas flinched. "Well, it's clear that for what ever message they're trying to send; they are targeting the humans from the school, because obviously the 'gold eyes' go there. We should be there to, so we can protect the humans and prevent more disappearances. The vampires have to make their selection while the humans are at school, and for whatever reason, the 'gold eyes' just haven't noticed them yet." He explained.

It was quiet while we all thought on it. Felix grunted again. "He's right. No more disappearances. Besides, you are bound to be seen some time in the city, and you're too noticeable to be around and suspicious if you don't go to school. You all look eighteen or younger and we don't need any questions or back ground checks if they manage to get a picture or something of you; Thomas and Bella are still young enough where they'll be in the system."

With that, Felix took off again, leaving Thomas, Raven, and myself standing frozen on the roof top.

I snarled, stomping my foot and cracking the rooftop.

_School?_

I can barely converse with vampires, how am I supposed to _interact_ with humans?

**XxXxXxXxXXX**

**A second chapter on this…mediocre story.**

**(1) - "Vampires with golden eyes?"**

**Review please! I need some inspiration for this story. And others. Just in general, really.**

**P.S I'm going to be posting another (possibly two?) stories soon, and once I do, I'll have a poll up, and everyone's gotta vote which story they want me to continue and the rest will come down until I've gained that infamous writer's block on all my current stories. Well, that certainly was a long sentence. I'm not sure it came out right.**

**P.P.S Don't laugh…okay, laugh; this is going to sound strange and quite possibly pathetic. You know the whole pictures on your profile of characters and everything? How do you do it? Is there some site you go to, to mess with images? Is it like Paint or Gimp? What's the deal there? The only common denominator I see is 'blogspot'. What's that?**

**See? Kind of pathetic, but it's not my fault. I'm seriously no good with computers. But I can't draw either, so I can't really sketch something up and put it on Deviantart. **

**Alright, I'll let you all get back to your lives now.**

**-Paige.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or anything that's familiar, yada yada yada.**

**Rated: T.**

**Author: Paige Turner.**

**Summary: 'There was something familiar about them. Something I couldn't put my finger on. Especially the small one; the pixie like girl who stood completely still in shock, like she saw a ghost.' Set during New Moon. A/B R&R! ^^**

**BELLA**

School.

Bleh.

Hormonal driven teenagers.

Bleh times two.

Thomas's nostrils flared, his eyes dimming from a vibrant red to a deep maroon as his fists clenched. We weren't even out of the car yet and he was already being effected. I would have felt sympathy for him had he not been the one to suggest going to school in the first place. As it was, all I wanted to do was wrap my hands around his neck and squeeze until his head popped off. But that would surely draw even more attention to ourselves, so I refrained.

Raven leaned back in her seat, rubbing her temples. Class was about to start and we'd have to get out of the car soon, but we were all hesitant to. Thomas because he was afraid he would slip up and expose us, Raven because she hates school with a passion and doesn't like playing human, and me because I just didn't know how. Being an Elite Volturi was the absolutely only thing I knew. I didn't know who I was before, what kind of person I was, or how a normal human was supposed to act.

"_Va bene_, I'm ready; let's go." Thomas said, nodding to himself before looking over at us. My lip curled back in a silent snarl and he quickly looked on to Raven who was glaring, but nodded. With that, he opened the door of the red mazda rx evolve. 'Cause of course when we contacted Aro and told him of our plan; he shipped a butt-load of money, clothes, and this car, telling us to get a place and try to blend. Just how in the _hell_ were we supposed to blend in this shiny thing? But Raven wouldn't part with it when I suggested trading it for a less conspicuous one at the nearest car dealer ship.

Friggin' Raven and her friggin' obsession with shiny things.

A group of humans were walking down the sidewalk passed our parking space, all of them turning their heads to look and point and whisper as we got out. I grimaced when one of the humans recognized me and grinned, running over and leaving her own friends gawking. " Antonia _dannazione._" Raven looked over at me with a raised eyebrow as the human got closer. I just shook my head; those two didn't need to know who this was. We're forbidden to leave any potential threats to exposing our secret, and I should have killed her, but I couldn't bring myself to. Not after witnessing that gymnasium room and hearing what that vampire had planned.

"You're here! I can't believe it; at first I thought I had dreamt you up or something. I was hammered last night; I can barely remember anything. But I remember you; you took me to the hospital." Antonia gushed, hooking her arm around mine. I made a face, trying to lean away from the human as her blood called out to me, swallowing a mouthful of venom. "Are you taking classes here now? What a coincidence that you'd find me last night and now you're going to the same school as me. I can't remember if I told you my name or not; I'm-"

"Antonia, I know." I grumbled.

Her face brightened even more as she nodded. "Yes! Aw, that's sweet that you remembered. What's your name? Because I forgot. I'm really bad with remembering things and-"

"Isabella." I quickly replied. This girl could _talk_, man. How was she even breathing through all that?

"Such a pretty name! And your accent - are you from Italy?" I nodded. "I knew it! I've always wanted to go there; but I've got to save up first. I hear it is beautiful, is it?" I nodded again. "Maybe you could show me around there sometime then." She grinned, winking at me. Thomas snorted while I looked around like I stepped into the Twilight Zone. What the _hell_ was wrong with this girl? Where are her damn instincts telling her to run away from me? She had absolutely _no_ self preservation skills whatsoever-

_There was a sigh of amusement while cold arms wrapped around me, accompanied by a high, light voice, sounding like wind chimes. "What would you ever do without me, clumsy Bella?"_

"-you're wearing; it's nice. Very fancy." Antonia finished, looking up at me with another smile.

I briefly looked down at my attire and then to her. I wasn't quite sure what to wear; so I had worn what I would have back at the Volturi castle, just minus my blades and the cloak. A pair of black dress pants, a tucked in red blouse, and a black vest with my combat boots. I even rolled up the sleeves of my blouse to my elbows to make it more casual, and a pair of big sunglasses to hide my eyes. Sure, it would look weird wearing sunglasses here where there was never any sun; but it's not like they would make us stick out more so than we already were, so Raven and Thomas had a pair on as well, dressed very similar to me. Antonia herself had on a pair of runners, jeans, and a blue coat, with her hair hidden under her hood. _Very_ different.

_"Grazie._" I replied. "You look… nice yourself."

"You have wonderful english. Was it hard to learn?" She inquired, following me as I started walking to Raven, Thomas, and mine first class. I shook my head with a frown, because I knew I wasn't actually Italian. When I first woke up, I had an American accent and didn't know a word of Italian, but over the years I had switched to speaking Italian mainly. It made me wonder how I ended all the way up in Italy. There were no records of me in the country; but I was never permitted to try and find myself in America. Aro said that it would be like looking for a needle in the hay stack and a waste of time.

Raven spun on her heel when we stopped outside a door, glaring fiercely at Antonia. "This is our class; you can leave. Now." She stated.

I could hear Antonia's heart skip a beat as she paled and nodded, flashing me a shaky smile before practically running down the hall. _"A proposito di tempo ha lasciato."_ Thomas muttered as we walked to the back of the room, ignoring the humans staring. Indeed it _was_ about time she left; I don't think I could have listened to her prattle on and one about _nothing_ for much longer.

Raven growled too low in her chest for humans to hear as she glared at him. "It's still your fault we're here in the first place." I nodded with my own glare.

Thomas sighed, slumping down into his seat, oblivious to the girl next to him swooning.

**XXxxXXxxXXxxXX**

It was during one of my spares while the other two were gone to get some fresh air and calm themselves down some before returning for the afternoon classes, when I bumped into one of the vegetarian vampires. I was sitting outside, under a tree while it was pouring. The branches and leaves and everything were so thick that only a couple drops were hitting me, keeping me mostly sheltered while I sat there with my eyes closed, listening to the rain.

I could feel the vampire approach, more than smell or hear them because of the rain. I lifted my sunglasses and opened my eyes, glancing up into a pair of golden ones. Huh. The vampire from the previous night was telling _some_ truth then; there were golden eyed ones. Ones he was supposedly created to fight. I wonder if they knew.

Pale blonde hair fell down around her shoulders just barely, not quite long, but not quite short. Her skin was as pale and flawless as mine, though she was taller than me, and her features were softer. She offered me a friendly smile from under her umbrella and I nodded at her. "My name is Kate Denali." She said, not having to raise her voice over the rain. Both of us could hear each other fine.

"Isabella." I replied in turn.

Kate's smile widened as she stepped closer. "Aro sent you and two others, right?" I nodded. "And you're an Elite?"

_"Infatti io sono."_ I replied with a nod. "He doesn't want anything to go wrong or for you and the other coven to get hurt." My head tilted as I looked at her curiously. "Are you old friends with him? I've never seen him this… concerned is not the right word but I can't think of another."

Kate's brows furrowed. "I"m not, personally, no. Neither is my coven; our cousins are. Carlisle is dear friends with Aro; he used to live with them for a while, so I've heard."

Carlisle… Carlisle… that sounded familiar. Perhaps the others have spoke about him before? He sounds very familiar.

"Tell me about this army of vampires you think is being created." I commented.

Kate shook her head. "We don't just think; we _know_ there is one being created. Otherwise we wouldn't have asked for help. As it is; we're already in the debt of you three who are here and taking your time. Once all of this is over, who knows what will have transpired."

"Are you afraid?" I asked gently, looking at her worried face.

Her brows furrowed as she looked at me. "Are you not?" I shook my head. "Being a Volturi, even an Elite, doesn't make you invincible, Isabella."

"I am under no delusion of the sort."

"Then how are you not afraid?" She asked. "You don't fear death?" Frowning, I stared at the grass, searching through myself. No… No, there was no fear of death there. Should there have been? "I feel sorry for you then," She said and I looked at her curiously. "One who does not fear death must not have anything to live for. I can't imagine that."

I opened and close my mouth a few times, thinking over what she said.

Nothing to live for? I had the Volturi… but no, I did not live for them. I killed for them, because they were the only thing I knew, but I did not live for them. Kate was right. I had nothing to live for, nothing at all.

She sighed. "I'm sorry. Perhaps I've said something I shouldn't. The bell will ring shortly though; have a good day, Isabella." Kate said quietly, walking off through the rain once more.

**XXxxXXxxXX**

**What up, guys? A little something for everything, eh? Short, but who cares, right? At least it's something.**

**So review and whatnot, though I'm not sure you will. It seemed everyone has already abandoned these really old stories; perhaps me updating them is just a waste of time. **

**Mreh; I still owe it to the stories themselves to finish.**

**And I apologize about the Italian if it is horrid and completely wrong; I don't know a lick of the language and am using Google Translate, so… yeah, sorry. ^^**

**-Paige.**


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